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North Dakota State Recruiting Board
The Bison have 20 commits in the 2027 class — No. 82 nationally and No. 2 in the Mountain West per Profile — as Tim Polasek recruits through NDSU’s FBS transition.
Tim Stephens
Latest: Five commits in a 16-day stretch pushed the class to 20. The June surge started with Lucas Diehl (DE, 6-2, 265, Kuemper Catholic, Carroll, Iowa) on June 2 and ended with Logan Mayfield (SAF, 6-1, 170, Lee’s Summit North, Mo.) on June 18.
The number: 20 — commits in NDSU’s 2027 class, ranked No. 82 nationally and No. 2 in the Mountain West per Profile with a class score of 107.9.
The fit
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Sign Up FreeEighteen of 20 commits come from NDSU’s traditional recruiting footprint — the Dakotas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. The Bison built 10 FCS national titles recruiting from this pipeline. The Mountain West transition has not changed the map.
The class leans defensive up front. Four edge rushers (Guardian Harris, Dorian Ward, Andrej Sabatka, Jack Noonan), two defensive ends (Lucas Diehl, Jacob Sokoll) and a linebacker (Ashton VanBeek) give the Bison seven defenders in the front seven. Harris at 6-4, 230 from Fond du Lac, Wis. and Sabatka at 6-4, 245 from Grand Island, Neb. bring the most size to the edge group.
Drew Kessel (TE, 6-7, 205, Fargo South, Fargo, N.D.) is the highest-rated commit with a 70.81 Profile grade and 10 offers. Carter Temple (QB, 6-3, 215, Kearney, Mo.) leads the class in offers with 12 and carries a 60.6 grade. Ebube Ezukanma (WR, 6-3, 180, Timber Creek, Fort Worth, Texas) and Jeremy Tolliver Jr. (SKL, 6-4, 190, Tampa Catholic, Fla.) are the only commits from outside the upper Midwest.
The commits
Drew Kessel — TE, 6-7, 205, Fargo South, Fargo, N.D. Profile grade: 70.81. Stars: 3.4. Offers: 10. Committed June 5.
Bryce Vigness — IOL, 6-3, 285, Papillion-La Vista, Papillion, Neb. Profile grade: 69.75. Stars: 3.4. Offers: 10. Committed April 28.
Carter Temple — QB, 6-3, 215, Kearney, Kearney, Mo. Profile grade: 60.6. Stars: 3.1. Offers: 12. Committed May 16.
Austyn Wittek — RB, 6-0, 190, New Richmond, New Richmond, Wis. Profile grade: 59.79. Stars: 3.0. Offers: 3. Committed Jan. 25.
Jackson Cook — CB, 6-0, 165, Harlem, Machesney Park, Ill. Profile grade: 59.78. Stars: 3.0. Offers: 5. Committed June 10.
Lucas Diehl — DE, 6-2, 265, Kuemper Catholic, Carroll, Iowa. Profile grade: 59.13. Stars: 3.0. Offers: 6. Committed June 2.
Guardian Harris — Edge, 6-4, 230, Fond du Lac, Fond du Lac, Wis. Profile grade: 56.69. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 4. Committed May 3.
Jacob Sokoll — DE, 6-3, 225, Mahtomedi, Mahtomedi, Minn. Profile grade: 55.4. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 3. Committed April 7.
Andrew Matt — OT, 6-6, 290, Carrington, N.D. Profile grade: 54.72. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 1. Committed March 27.
Cody Braun — SAF, 6-0, 190, Minnetonka, Minnetonka, Minn. Profile grade: 54.4. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 1. Committed March 23.
Ashton VanBeek — LB, 6-1, 205, Neenah, Wis. Profile grade: 54.38. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 1. Committed March 27.
Dorian Ward — Edge, 6-3, 215, Jefferson, Bloomington, Minn. Profile grade: 53.76. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 3. Committed March 28.
Andrej Sabatka — Edge, 6-4, 245, Grand Island Central Catholic, Neb. Profile grade: 53.42. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 3. Committed May 15.
Martin Sleen — RB, 5-11, 185, Hermantown, Hermantown, Minn. Profile grade: 53.31. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 3. Committed April 11.
Peyton Seil — OT, 6-6, 305, Bismarck Century, N.D. Profile grade: 52.84. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 3. Committed June 14.
Ebube Ezukanma — WR, 6-3, 180, Timber Creek, Fort Worth, Texas. Profile grade: 51.4. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 6. Committed May 31.
Jack Noonan — Edge, 6-5, 240, Rosemount, Minn. Profile grade: 51.31. Stars: 2.9. Offers: 2. Committed March 24.
Hunter Peterson — TE, 6-3, 225, Watertown, Watertown, S.D. Profile grade: 42.7. Stars: 2.7. Offers: 2. Committed April 27.
Logan Mayfield — SAF, 6-1, 170, Lee’s Summit North, Mo. Profile grade: 35.02. Stars: 2.6. Offers: 2. Committed June 18.
Jeremy Tolliver Jr. — SKL, 6-4, 190, Tampa Catholic, Fla. Profile grade: 30.15. Stars: 2.5. Offers: 2. Committed May 30.
Twenty commits. The geographic identity is the same one that produced 10 FCS national titles — upper Midwest athletes from programs within NDSU’s traditional reach. Polasek is building the defensive front for Mountain West competition, and the highest-rated prospect in the class is a 6-7 tight end from Fargo.
Source: Profile (profilefb.com), accessed June 22, 2026.
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